Building My Empire in the Frozen Apocalypse (Riley Carter) novel Chapter 78

Chapter 78 The Abandoned Mine

“Let’s move!”

Riley pushed hard with her poles, launching herself forward like an arrow from a bow.

“Whoosh-”

The wind roared past her ears.

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This kind of speed was downright addictive. What had been a grueling, half–hour trudge through knee–deep snow now took barely seven or eight minutes on skis.

Neeko, in her jaguar form, kept pace just behind her, paws flying across the powder. She seemed just as thrilled by the rush.

In no time, they’d reached the foot of the abandoned mine.

It was maybe half a mile from camp in a straight line–practically right in their backyard.

Riley didn’t head straight in. Instead, she skied a slow loop around the perimeter.

Here, the snow cover was thinner, speckled with grimy black coal dust frozen into the ice.

“Not bad… A shallow surface mine,” she murmured to herself.

She swung her hand axe, knocking loose a chunk of dark rock. A prompt flashed instantly. “Obtained: High–Grade Anthracite x1.”

Basically free for the taking.

She was about to start digging when a glint of something unusual caught her eye.

Over in the half–buried ruins of a mining shed, something was reflecting the low sunlight.

Riley skied over and pushed aside the rotted planking.

For a second, she just stared.

It was a chest.

The entire thing was a polished silver–white, engraved with intricate, looping patterns.

“Discovered: Lost Explorer’s Cache (Silver Tier)”

“A silver chest? Out here?”

She’d never seen one this high–tier just sitting in the wild before.

Was it because of that brutal freeze they’d just survived? Maybe the system was tossing a bone to the survivors by upping the resource quality on the map.

“Whatever. Loot first, think later.”

Riley rubbed her hands together.

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Chapter 78 The Abandoned Mine

This time, no brute force was needed. The chest wasn’t locked, just secured with an elegant little clasp.

“Click.”

The lid sprang open with a soft, silvery glow.

“Obtained: Refined Steel x20

“Obtained: Emergency Ration Bars x10

“Obtained: Medium–Grade Recovery Solution x2

“Obtained: Copper Wiring x5

“Obtained: Growth–Boost Fertilizer x10

“Obtained: Special Schematic–Surveillance Camera Module x1”

“Surveillance…?”

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If she could get power run to them and mount these around the walls, she’d be able to kick back on her couch and watch the whole perimeter from her tablet.

Riley tucked the schematic away with a satisfied grin.

“Though, for a silver chest… just one special schematic feels a little light, doesn’t it?”

Still, this chest alone had already made the trip worth it.

“Grrrr…”

Just then, Neeko crouched low, a warning rumble building in her throat.

She was staring fixedly across the mine, toward a stretch of rolling, snow–covered foothills.

“What is it?”

Riley’s smile vanished. In one smooth motion, she drew both axes from her back and followed Neeko’s line of sight.

With nothing but open white plains, visibility was sharp.

Maybe two miles out, in a stretch that should’ve been empty, several thin columns of dark smoke were rising into the still air.

Were those… campsites?

And not just one.

Riley counted four or five low–tier bases clustered tightly together, arranged so close they almost formed a single, large compound, They were positioned to cover each other.

“Huddling up for safety? Is that even allowed here?”

Riley raised an eyebrow.

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Chapter 78 The Abandoned Mine

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In a world where everyone watched their back, the odds of several camps spawning this close together were lower than winning the jackpot.

Unless…

They’d used something special. An item, maybe.

Around those camps, she could make out a few distant figures moving. Their clothes were a mismatched, scavenged look. Some carried crude spears tipped with stone; others had rusted machetes or blades. They seemed to be clearing snow–and a few were definitely looking in this direction.

“Trouble.”

Riley’s brow furrowed slightly.

They were way too close to this mine. If they figured out there was a rich coal seam here, conflict would be inevitable.

“Better not show myself yet.”

She made the call quickly.

No point rushing into contact when she didn’t know who–or what–she was dealing with.

The mine wasn’t going anywhere.

“Neeko, let’s pull back.”

Riley crouched low, using the skis‘ agility to glide silently toward the shaded back slope of the mine, Neeko padding softly behind

her.

*****

Meanwhile, in that cluster of camps…

A few men were huddled around a freshly built campfire, soaking in the heat.

“Goddamn, what kind of messed–up weather was that? Nearly froze solid back on the last map,” a burly, bald man grumbled, spitting into the flames.

“Quit whining. You’re still breathing, aren’t you?” replied a lanky guy beside him, his voice carrying a sly edge. “Thank the boss for using that Group Relocation Token to pull all us core members‘ camps together. If we were spread out, some lone wolf would’ve picked us off one by one by now.”

“Heh. True enough,” the bald man chuckled, a mean grin spreading across his face. “Five of us together now. That makes us the biggest crew in this zone. Ain’t nobody dumb enough to mess with us.”

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